Freddie Freeman had three hits and drove in a run as the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Tampa Bay Rays 3-0 in the rubber match of a three-game series on Sunday.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto (10-7) allowed five hits with no walks and six strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings. Alex Vesia and Brock Stewart followed before the Rays loaded the bases with two outs in the ninth against Blake Treinen.
Ben Casparius replaced Treinen and got Yandy Diaz to ground out for his second save.
Junior Caminero and Jake Magnum had two hits apiece for Tampa Bay, which was shut out for the 10th time this season and lost for the fifth time in its last six games.
Ohtani had two hits and reached base four times with two stolen bases for Los Angeles, which recorded their fifth shutout and concluded their nine-game road trip with a 5-4 record.
The Dodgers were held to three hits over the first five scoreless innings by Joe Boyle, who walked two and struck out two.
Mason Englert (0-1) replaced Boyle to begin the sixth inning and allowed a leadoff single to Freeman, who moved to second on Michael Conforto’s one-out walk.
Andy Pages followed with a single to left field and Freeman beat the throw to the plate, ending the Dodgers’ 18-inning scoreless streak.
Los Angeles tacked on another run in the seventh inning after Ohtani hit a leadoff single and stole second base. Mookie Betts walked and both runners advanced on a double steal before Freeman singled in a run.
Freeman has reached base in 19 straight games and is batting .396 (19-for-48) with two home runs and 12 RBIs in his last 12 games. He drove in four of the Dodgers’ eight runs in the weekend series.
The Rays threatened in the fifth inning with runners on the corners with one out. Yamamoto escaped the jam when Diaz popped out and Brandon Lowe struck out.
Los Angeles added an insurance run in the ninth on Betts’ sacrifice fly against Griffin Jax, who was making his Rays debut.
Los Angeles second baseman Tommy Edman exited the game in the fifth inning with a right ankle sprain after hitting a one-out single.
–Field Level Media
